This copy is for your personal non-commercial use only. To order presentation-ready copies of Toronto Star content for distribution to colleagues, clients or customers, or inquire about permissions/licensing, please go to: www.TorontoStarReprints.com

Life and death questions loom large at 200 Wellesley: Fiorito

The tenants of 200 Wellesley want to know why a 2-year old child died in their building.

A makeshift memorial was set up outside 200 Wellesley St. E. after the death of a 2-year-old girl there on Jan. 3. Toronto police have characterized the child's death as suspicious.
(Andrew Francis Wallace / Toronto Star)

There was a vigil at 200 Wellesley on the weekend. The vigil was for a child who died. The child, a girl, was two years old.

No one knows what happened.

For such a brief life, there was a brief word, a short prayer, and a moment of silence.

The moment of silence was imperfect, containing the whirring of a fan, a distorted voice coming over the walkie-talkie of a security guard, and the comings and goings of disinterested visitors to the building.

The vigil took place in front of an overflow of teddy bears, toys and candles.

Article Continued Below

There have been other deaths at 200 Wellesley since last June; three young men who fell or jumped in separate incidents from upper floors; two from the same balcony. What about these deaths?

No one knows.

There are perhaps 1,500 people who live in this building. It is community housing, but it is also a village. Neighbours, especially those with children, look at each other in sadness and silence.

They want to know.

An hour before the vigil, there were people from Public Health in a basement meeting room. They came with pamphlets, and there was talk of counsel for those who grieve. You know what would ease the grief? The answer to some dark, stark questions:

Why did this child die?

Why did those men jump?

People look at each other and wonder why and, until they find out, it is foolish to think that their grief can be counselled away.

I saw three women standing close together. They are all from Eritrea; therefore, they know grief, and they all have kids.

Yordanos said, “It’s very sad.”

Aden said, “As a mother . . .” She left that thought unfinished, but then she said, “When I heard, I was scared, It is recently dangerous. I’ve been here 12 years. Now, it is unsafe. We don’t know who’s coming here. People jumping, why, why? How do you trust?”

Bontu said, “Nobody knows. You are a mum, you have kids.” Neither she, nor her kids, will get over this easily. And then Aden said, “God created us, God takes us. But now? You’re scared for yourself.”

And for your children.

A woman named Tia said, “My daughter is 4.” Her daughter’s name is Faith. “It bothers me that I don’t know what happened. Where’s the mother? They haven’t said.”

Has she talked about death with her daughter? Tia nodded. “She asked me to write something on the wall.” Her daughter’s message: “I miss the 2-year-old baby. I love you.”

Faith saw us talking then and she came and pointed to the memorial and said, “There are toys for the baby who died. If she were alive, she’d be beautiful.”

Yes.

Over there, off to one side, was a man named Bob. He is 33 years old, and he has lived at 200 Wellesley for 33 years, and his wife has also lived there all her life, and that makes them rare and gives them special knowledge.

They have three kids, all girls; coincidentally, one of their girls is 2 years old; chillingly, they used to live in the apartment where the child died.

Bob said, “I’ve seen all kinds of stuff. I’ve seen it all. Nothing has surprised me; just this death; what if it was my daughter?” He wants to get out of the building, and out of this town.

I don’t blame him.

His 10-year-old, Michelle, heard us talking and said, “We’ve been through a lot; fires, ambulances, people dying.” I asked Michelle if she was going to grow up and live in this building all her life, as her parents have done.

The Toronto Star and thestar.com, each property of Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, One Yonge Street, 4th Floor, Toronto, ON, M5E 1E6. You can unsubscribe at any time. Please contact us or see our privacy policy for more information.

More from the Toronto Star & Partners

LOADING

Copyright owned or licensed by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or distribution of this content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Toronto Star Newspapers Limited and/or its licensors. To order copies of Toronto Star articles, please go to: www.TorontoStarReprints.com